Polisher head abrasive feed



Nov. 27, 1956 R. E. REIMAN POLISHER HEAD ABRASIVE FEED 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 21, 1955 INVENTOB Ralph E. .Eeimon,

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1956 R. REIMAN POLISHER HEAD ABRASIVE FEED 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 21, 1955 INvE/vToe llllllllflllllilllllilillllilllllnnm u- :i. 7

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AT TOBNEY United States Patent 2,771,721 POLISHER HEAD ABRASIVE FEED Ralph E. Reiman, Indianapolis, Ind. Application June 21, 1955, Serial No. 516,981

2 Claims. (Cl. 51193.7)

This invention relates to means for quickly feeding flexible sheets coated with abrasives outwardly from a stored source whereby the ends of the abrasive-coated material, as the abrasive wears off in the polishing or grinding operations may be replaced by succeeding lengths thereof.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a struc ture which may be operated without having to even stop the turning of the polishing head, the operations being made either singly or one after another to obtain the desired lengths or areas of polishing material as may be desired or required for a specific job.

Heretofore it has been necessary to stop the turning of the head; unscrew a nut on the end of the main head shaft; remove a plate; then advance the abrasive sheets; replace the head plate; and secure it in position by means of the nut. All of this required quite a little time which could otherwise be utilized in the actual polishing or grinding operations.

By use of my invention, the polishing head does not have to be taken apart for successive advancements of the polishing sheets, and the entire operation may be accomplished simply by grasping a smooth, cylindrical member and momentarily gripping it while the head turns until the sheets have advanced one step, and if that advancement is not suflicient, again grasping the rotating member for a successive advancement and so on.

A further important object of the invention is to pro vide a structure of the nature indicated which may be produced at a relatively low price, and which is quite simple in its construction and therefore quite durable over long periods of usage.

A still further important object of the invention is to provide the mechanism embodying my invention in a space requiring no extension of the polishing head, wherein the mechanism is entirely confined within the head without any alterations thereto other than mounting the mechanism on a detachable plate which is normally a standard part of the head.

These and many other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those versed in the art in the following description of one particular form of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a view in outside end elevation and partial section of a structure embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view in partial section;

Fig. 3 is a view in inside elevation of the outer, detachable head plate to which the invention is applied;

Fig. 4 is a view in vertical section on the line 44 in Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a view in vertical elevation on the line in Fig. 3.

The external appearance of the polishing head discloses a back plate which is fixed in a driving connection through a hub 11 to a drive shaft 12. Extending across from the plate 10 in parallel relation to an extension of the shaft 12 outwardly from the plate 10, are a ice plurality of brushes 13, herein shown as 12 in number as one example for a small size polishing head, and between those brushes there extends outwardly in free relation therebetween strips or sheets of abrasive coated material 14. Then on the outer end there is an enclosing plate 16.

internally of the head, there are a plurality of rods 17 equally spaced apart circumferentially and extending between the heads 10 and 16. A bundle of the sheets 14 is mounted on each of these rods 17, by means of a loop 18 engaging by end portions with the sheets 14 and encircling the rod 17, Fig. 1. 1n the present form shown, the bundles consist of two sheets of the material 14 only, whereas in larger heads, employing more brushes 13, and more radiating sheets 14, there would be an increased number of the sheets in each bundle. In the present showing, each of the sheets 14 is carried from the respective post 17 on which they are mounted and secured to wrap around circumferentially over succeeding bunches, Fig. l, so as to give appreciable lengths to the sheets 14 rather than having them extend directly radially outwardly between the brushes from the rods 17. One sheet 14 only extends between adjacent brushes 13. In the present showing, Fig. l, the turning of the head would be in a counter-clockwise direction so that the sheets 14 will rest by end portions against the following brushes 13 in each instance. The rods 17 have their back ends mounted in a plate 19 which is revoluble about the shaft 12 and not fixed thereto as is the back plate 10. By this means, the sheets 14 may be pulled outwardly to unwind around the rods 17 to give greater length in relation to the radial projections of the brushes 13.

The brushes 13 in each instance are supported by a holder 20 in turn fixed by a respective end through means of a tab 21 to the back plate 10, and these holders 20 extend across to rest on a flange 22 extending inwardly from the front plate 16. So much of the construction so far described is now in common usage and therefore does not constitute the invention per se. However that structure in combination with the structure now to be described does form the invention.

The shaft 12 extends forwardly from the outer side of the plate 16 and has a reduced screw-threaded length 12a forming a shoulder 23. A sleeve 24 is fitted over the end of the shaft 12 to have an outer flange 25 abut the shoulder 23. The sleeve 24 extends through the plate 16 and carries on the inside of the plate a ratchet wheel 26. The ratchet Wheel 26 is free to revolve on the shaft 12. This wheel 26 is secured against longitudinal travel of the shaft 12, by being mounted on the sleeve 24 and there retained by means of a spring washer 27 carried by the sleeve 24.

On the forward side of the plate 16, there is mounted a hand wheel 28 to be free to revolve around the sleeve 24, and it is held against longitudinal displacement therealong by having the flange 25 extend outwardly against a hub portion 29, Fig. 2. The sleeve 24 is retained on the shaft 12 by means of a nut 30 screwthreadedly engaging the end and forcing the flange central portion back against the shoulder 23 thereby compressively holding the sleeve 24 and flange 25 in engagement with the shaft 12. Thus, the hand wheel 28 is free to turn relative to the shaft 12, and also the ratchet wheel 26 is free to turn relative to the shaft 12.

On the inside of the plate 16, Figs. 35 inclusive, there is mounted an escapement structure as follows.

A lever 32 is rockably mounted on the plate 16 on a pivot pin or screw 33 and carries a pair of pallets or pawls 34 and 35 to be in the path of the teeth 36 of the ratchet wheel 26. A spring 37 is secured by one end 38 to the plate 16, and by its other end 39 to the outer end 40 of the lever 32. By reason of this spring connection,

the pawl 35 is normally retained in contact with the periphery of the wheel 26 as indicated in Pig. 3.

A lever 41 is rocltztbly connected to the inside of the plate 16 on a pivot pin screw 2 to have one end rockably connected to a link 50, the other end of this link 50 being rocltably connected to the lever 32 between the screw 33 and the outer end ii A pin 43 is ilF-Cd to the other end of the lever 4! and extends forwardly through a slot 44 cut through the plate in.

The pin 43 extends forwardly beyond the outer face of the plate 16, and enters freely into a hole if? provided through the hand wheel 28. By rocking of the hand wheel 23, the pin 43 is caused to travel along the slot 44 and in turn through the lever 43, the link 58, and the lever 32, rock the pallets 3d and 35 in relat on to the teeth 36 of the ratchet Wheel 26. The ratchet wheel 26 is provided with a plurality of holes theretluough, one hole 47 for each of the sheet holding rods 17. the forward ends of the rods 17 entering and being supported by the plate 26, the forward Cl'ltls ertering one each of these holes 47 respectively.

in the position of the parts indicated in Fig. 3, the pallet 35 is against the tooth 350. which retains the ratchet Wheel 26 in a position stationary relative to the plate 16 as it may turn with the shaft 32. Thus in this position, the sheets 14 are held against being pulled outwardly under friction as they contact the surfaces of the articles (not shown) which may be in the act of being polished.

With the head turning, the hand wheel 28 may be gripped by the operators hand, allowing the hand Wheel to stop for an instant, in which action of stopping, the pin 43 is carried from its position shown in Fig. 3, toward the opposite end of the slot 44 so as to bring the pawl 35 outwardly from the wheel 26 to clear the tooth 36:: while the pawl or pallet 34 is urged against the wheel in the path of the teeth 36. Then upon release, the spring 37 will return the pawl 35 against the periphery of the wheel 36 to come into the path of the next teeth 36!). The wheel 26 will tend to make that movement due to the inci that the sheets of material l4 will tend to iiy outwardly thus relatively revolving the wheel 26 within the limits of the adjacent teeth 36:: and 36/) as controlled by the pallet 35. When the pallet 35 engages against the tooth 3511. the hand wheel 28 will be free from the gripping action of the operators hand, so that the adjustment of the lengths of the sheets of material Li is thus automatically secured all without even having to stop the turning of the entire polishing head.

liy repeated gripping and releasing of the hand wheel 28, the paper t l may be allowed to feed out to the desired length relative to the outer end of the brushes l3.

Thus it is to be seen that l have produced a very simple, yet most effective structure for controlling the feed of the abrasive sheets is. and while i have described my invention in one pirticular form, it is obvious that structural changes may be employed without. departing from the spirit oi the invention, and i therefore do not desire to be limited to that precise form beyond the limitations which may be imposed by the following claims.

I claim:

1. For advancing flexible sheets carrying abrasive from between radially extending backing brushes of a polishing head having a drive shaft, relatively positioned front and rear plates spaced along said heads both revoluble with said shaft; and transverse pins extending between said heads, said sheets being anchored by inner ends to said pins and initially circumferentially wrapped by portions of their length around said pins; a toothed Wheel rockably mounted about said shaft inside of said front plate; means drivingly interengaging said pins with said wheel for simultaneous circumferential shifting of all of said pins around said shaft; a hand wheel revolubly carried by said shaft on the outer side of said front plate; an escapement lever rockably mounted on the inside of said front plate; a pair of spaced pawls on said lever rockable alternately in and out of the path of the teeth on said ratchet wheel; said front plate having a slot therethrough; a rock lever on said plate interconnecting the said escape ment lever; a pin fixed to said rock lever and extending through said slot; and means on said hand wheel engaging said pin; the gripping of said hand wheel during turning of said shaft setting up travel between said ratchet wheel and said hand wheel advancing the ratchet wheel by one of said pawls relative to said front plate, unwrapping said sheets by that degree of advancement.

2. In a polishing head having a central shaft; a plurality of abrasive sheet holding pins spaced radially from and circumferentially around said shaft; a plate carried by said shaft; a toothed ratchet Wheel revolubly carried about said shaft and receiving said pins, said pins being revoluble around the shaft by turning of said wheel relative to said shaft; a hand wheel located externally and concentrically of said head, revolubly carried by said shaft; ratchet means in the path of said ratchet Wheel; means interconnecting said hand wheel with said ratchet means; said interconnecting means being characterized by advancing said ratchet wheel tooth by tooth by intermittently holding said hand wheel stationary while said shaft continues to turn, producing shifting of said pins around the shaft; said ratchet Wheel being positioned adjacent one side of said plate; said hand Wheel being positioned at the opposite side of the plate from said ratchet wheel; said ratchet and interconnecting means comprising an escapement member mounted on said plate adjacent said ratchet wheel, a pair of spaced apart pawls on said ratchet wheel, a pair of spaced apart pawls on said member in the path of teeth around the ratchet wheel, and a pin freely extending through said plate and interconnecting said hand wheel and said member.

Swan May 31, 1955 Monjar July 19, 1955 

